Preparing public financial management systems to meet Covid-19 challenges by Sandeep Saxena and Michelle Stone published by IMF (3/2020).
“The outbreak of Covid-19 will test public financial management (PFM) systems in many ways, as did previous health emergencies related to Ebola and SARS. The challenges are likely to come mainly from: (i) estimating and finding additional budgetary and financial resources; (ii) ensuring availability of funds to service delivery units and disbursing them efficiently with due regard to controls; (iii) tracking and accounting for resources deployed in emergency response and reporting it transparently; and (iv) ensuring business continuity when faced with large-scale absence of staff. This note outlines steps that governments can take to prepare and strengthen the capacity of their PFM systems to respond to these challenges.
- PFM objectives in responding to a pandemic
PFM systems are critical to support the efficacy of the government’s emergency response. Governments around the world are facing the challenges posed by the Covid‑19 outbreak. Unprecedented pressures are likely on healthcare systems—both public and private—and governments may be required to provide fiscal stimulus in response to the crisis. Governments need to ensure that their PFM system is equipped to meet the additional requirements and new challenges in terms of:
- Delivery of emergency health services, supporting provision of health care to patients, the purchase of supplies, equipment, and human resources to monitor, contain and mitigate the outbreak of Covid-19;
- Ongoing delivery of essential services that may come under stress during an outbreak;
- Supporting new fiscal policies to assist sections of population in financial hardship; and
- Continued operations despite absence of PFM staff across government.
PFM systems should also be capable of supporting fiscal objectives¾whether that is finding offsetting savings for increased Covid‑19 related spending, or the preparation and delivery of fiscal stimulus packages to support economic activity where appropriate…”
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